BARBER: ‘Fringe’ or freedom? The dirty tricks being used to kill Alberta's independence vote

Mainstream and alt-media outlets on both sides of the border are working overtime to persuade you that President Trump and his administration are engaged in some shadowy, nefarious plot to interfere with — and perhaps undermine — Canadian sovereignty. After all, he did say that Canada should be the fifty-first state.The actual facts are far more mundane. The leaders of the Alberta Prosperity Project (APP) have met with officials in Washington, DC. It remains unclear whether they met with Trump. According to both a US government spokesperson and representatives of the APP, the discussions concerned the hypothetical feasibility of a line of credit in the event that the Alberta independence vote is positive. There does not seem to have been any discussion of involving the US in the independence campaign, using US resources in an independence campaign, or the APP requesting binding ties between an independent Alberta and the US. Put simply, they were exploring the same kind of standby credit facility that many readers have with their local bank. The US spokesperson explicitly stated that Washington offered no support for independence and made no commitment to the APP. These were merely conversations.British Columbia Premier David Eby inaccurately depicted the meetings and labelled the simple act of meeting US officials to discuss a line of credit as “treason.” With all due respect to the Premier, perhaps he should consult the Oxford English Dictionary before hurling such a loaded term. Treason, by definition, involves aiding an enemy of the realm — typically in wartime. The US has not been declared an enemy of Canada. The Premier’s overplayed hyperbole is not accidental; it is intentional. Far from treason, this is the APP leaders acting with foresight and being responsible toward the people of Alberta. If Alberta votes for independence, a challenging transition period will follow. A new constitution must be drafted and ratified, existing laws reviewed for compliance, a foundational election held, international relations will have to be established, and that is just the beginning. One of the issues needing immediate attention is financing the new government. This is not something you can improvise on the fly. Albertans should take comfort knowing that, unlike in Ottawa, adults are in charge at the APP. .Prime Minister Carney, echoing his past statements, claimed he is forthright with the President, expecting him to respect Canadian sovereignty. Alberta Premier Danielle Smith offered a more measured, generic statement about Canadian sovereignty — perfectly in line with her position held before she was elected. The Prime Minister clearly relishes the “threat to sovereignty” narrative; it helped propel him to victory. No one is seriously suggesting that the US would soon be sending troops to annex Canada. In both Canada and the US, freedom of speech is meant to protect even provocative or outlandish remarks. A politician floating the idea that Canada should become the fifty-first state is just talk. Some people in Minnesota say they want to join Canada, but President Trump did not dispatch troops to International Falls to suppress the “rebellion.” Carney’s statements are purely political and intentional. Meanwhile, as the collection of signatures for an Alberta independence referendum presses ahead, undeniable images of large crowds braving the cold to add their name to the petition repeatedly emerge. The politicians and the legacy media are intensifying their efforts to downplay the Alberta movement. They dismiss it as “fringe,” branding its supporters as bad Canadians, or worse. The objective seems clear: disenfranchise as many voters as possible by demoralizing Albertans, suppressing turnout, and engineering the referendum’s failure. To that end, Prime Minister Carney met with Thomas Lukaszuk, the driving force behind the “Forever Canada” petition, ostensibly to gather information on the independence movement and its supporters. The use of the recycled campaign slogans “threat to Canadian sovereignty” and “treason” is calculated to inflame nationalist passions. The insinuation of President Trump’s involvement is a transparent attempt to taint the independence movement by association. Name-calling (“fringe group”), the coordinated “stay in Canada” chorus being broadcast by premiers from British Columbia and Ontario, and the bandwagon appeals are all techniques of propaganda..There has been more than a decade that Albertans have been warning Ottawa that the country is headed in the wrong direction. Ottawa's response made things worse. Yes, Carney introduced a fudge mechanism, but since he controls when and how it applies, it functions less as a policy and more as a political bribe to dangle in front of restless provinces. Furthermore, the discontent is spreading because other provinces see the problems. Quebec’s sovereignty movement is once again in the headlines, and Saskatchewan is openly discussing similar frustrations as Alberta. Even parts of BC are looking to Alberta for examples of how to push back against federal overreach and problems specific to BC. Albertans should brace themselves, as each milestone of the independence initiative approaches, the use of propaganda will intensify, complete with the relentless, wall-to-wall messaging that defines a propaganda campaign. The legacy media, YouTube influencers, and politicians of various ranks — present and past — will increase the pressure on Alberta’s people. What they will not do is offer logical arguments, clear reasons, or even genuine policy changes to address the intolerable situation that the Ottawa elite has imposed on the province. In contrast, the APP, the Independence Party of Alberta, the Wildrose Independence Party of Alberta, and others offer a list of reasons and accompanying arguments for self-determination and independence. Regardless of one supporting or disagreeing with the independence initiative, the sorry state of affairs is that one party is peddling propaganda.Dr. A.W. Barber is the former Director of Asian Studies at the University of Calgary. He is internationally active and has wide-ranging interests.

BARBER: ‘Fringe’ or freedom? The dirty tricks being used to kill Alberta's independence vote

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